1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for producing a multilayer molded article which comprises a thermoplastic resin body and a skin material which is laminated on a part of the thermoplastic resin body.
2. Description of the Related Art
A large number of plastic molded articles are used in many fields including the automobile and domestic electric appliance fields because of their low cost, free moldability and light weight. However, they have some drawbacks that they have poor appearance and cool feeling and they tend to be easily flawed. Then, it is highly desired to impart decoration and soft feeling to the plastic molded articles. Hitherto, to impart decoration to the plastic molded article, there have been many methods for producing a partly laminated multilayer molded article comprising a thermoplastic resin body and a skin material which is laminated on a part of the thermoplastic resin.
When the partly laminated multilayer molded article is produced by supplying a rein melt between the skin material and a mold and closing the mold to press mold the article, it is important to precisely place the skin material on a desired part of the thermoplastic resin body and finish edges of the skin material with good appearance. To these ends, various molding methods have been proposed in which a measure for fixing the skin material is devised.
For example, Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 150741/1984 discloses a method for producing a partly laminated multilayer molded article wherein edges of the skin material are clamped with a skin material-fixing plate and a lower mold. However, by this method, it is impossible to laminate the skin material on a center part of the molded article.
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 175111/1990 discloses a molding method wherein a skin material is clamped with a special jig and placed in the mold. However, this method cannot be used when the skin material has a complicated shape.
A further method is disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 26414/1989, wherein a partition wall is provided on the mold surface and the skin material is placed on the mold surface with matching a parting part of the skin material with this partition wall to prevent dislocation of the skin material.
It may be possible to design a part of the mold in a telescopic form and fix the position of the skin material by sucking the skin material through a gap between the upper and lower molds. But, the edges of the skin material are simple and the molded article its loses high quality appearance.